Imagine that Guinness, the Irish maker of the nutritious, smooth and dark nectar, wanted to sell some more of the beloved beer. Seeing an opportunity, it decides that Germany, with its tradition of clean, crisp Pilsner would benefit from a broadening of the taste buds. This could be an ideal market in which to offer an alternative to the usual German drink of choice, and indeed with superior Teutonic brewing knowhow, plentiful clean mountain water, reduced transport costs, and to meet the expected demand, the obvious thing to do is to open a factory in Germany.
So, it builds a factory in the South of the country, puts a big fence around it, and recruits some ace German brewers. And when they turn up for work, the gates close behind them, a green, white and gold Irish flag is run up the pole, and they are greeted by management: “Welcome to Ireland! Can I see your passports?”
